This invention relates generally to telecommunications and computer networks and more particularly to establishing a network combining a plurality of types of physical transmissions media available in the home.
The development of broadband network access devices such as cable and xDSL modems enable high-speed network access from the home. Presently, highest speed network access in the home generally occurs between a WAN (e.g. the Internet) and a single communication device in the home (e.g. a PC with a TCP/IP stack) by means of a cable modem via an 802.3 10BaseT Ethernet interface or a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface. The availability of high-speed network access combined with the ready availability of network-enabled devices to consumers, including printers, storage devices, and smart appliances as well as computers, has created a demand for home networks.
The home network, or any other small, non-professionally run network, presents special problems. First, the network desired by the user may require infrastructure that the user may not want, or may not be able, to install. Currently, the already-existing infrastructure of telephone lines or electrical wiring may be used as part of the transmissions media for the network. Alternatively, a wireless transmissions system may also be used as a transmissions medium. These transmissions media cannot currently be combined in a single network. Current art provides connectivity between an outside WAN and a single home LAN on either phone line or electrical wiring or by wireless transmission. The problem is that a seamless network from anywhere in the home is not always possible. For example, there is not always a phone jack in every room, or an electrical wire may not provide a reliable connection between certain places in the home. Consequently, the reach of the home LAN is limited to the reach of the particular physical medium used. It is desirable to increase the home network access by combining multiple transmissions media in a single network.
The second difficulty in home networks is the need for the home network to be easily operated and maintained by a user who is not a computer professional. The home network needs to be as simple as possible. It is desirable to have a network that requires a minimum of manipulation on the part of the user in order to set up, operate and maintain the network.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus that establishes a computer network on a combination of telephone line, electrical wiring and/or wireless transmissions media.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for a home computer network that requires a minimum of administrative tasks for the user.
The problems of establishing a far-reaching and easily operated home network are solved by the present invention of a home network in multiple physical layers.
A home networking architecture and a physical layer protocol is configured such that a communication device in the home can access a home network over any one of the available physical transmissions media, i.e. in-house telephone wiring or electrical wiring, or a wireless network. The proposed networking architecture utilizes a bridging concept of combining multiple LANs residing on the different physical mediums available in the home, or small office building, or any other situation where a network is desired but adding additional infrastructure is undesirable or not possible.
The bridging function resides in the home hub. With such a hub, a communication device connected to telephone wiring can seamlessly establish communication with another communication device connected to the electrical wiring or to a wireless medium.